Piyush Goyal stays clear of issue of anti-dumping levy on solar gear

Goyal had said domestic solar power equipment manufacturing capacity of 700-800 MW is not sufficient to meet the government’s ambitious plans

[ezcol_1half]NEW DELHI: Staying clear of the demand for imposition of anti-dumping duty on solar equipment imports, Power Minister Piyush Goyal today said the ministry concerned will take an appropriate decision on the matter.

“I am minister for renewable energy. I am focusing in my mission and vision. The subject of anti-dumping relates to other ministry, which will take an appropriate call as and when it is required,” he told reporters after meeting a delegation of solar power equipment makers and developers who are demanding imposition of anti-dumping duty on solar equipment imports

To protect the struggling domestic industry, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in May had recommended imposing a restrictive duty in the range of $0.11-0.81 per watt on solar cells imported from the US, China, Malaysia and Chinese Taipei.

While the designated authority in the Department of Commerce recommends the anti dumping duty, provisional or final, it is the Ministry of Finance which acts upon such recommendation within three months and imposes levies

Goyal in the past had said domestic solar power equipment manufacturing capacity of 700-800 MW is not sufficient to meet the government’s ambitious plans of adding more power generation capacity through renewable energy sources.

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Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari had written to Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman opposing plans to levy of anti-dumping duty, saying this would escalate the cost of solar power in the country.

Meanwhile, Power Secretary P K Sinha said: “Solar power should contribute to supplying electricity to the transmission grid. For that the government should give incentives to the developers.”

He said that the companies setting up conventional power plants should also be asked to set up renewable power projects in order to have a better conventional and non conventional sources mix.

Solar power capacity addition is possible if aggressive support comes from banks, K N Subramaniam, CEO, Moser Baer Solar said in his presentation.

He added roof top solar in cities will go a long way in promoting solar power.

Sumant Sinha, Founder, ReNew Power, said let there be stability in policies so that we can encourage greater participation in the sector.

The government is of the view that solar power can become viable if produced on a large scale. The base price for solar projects can be kept low so that these projects can sustain themselves without the requirement of subsidy.